Q: What is Wi-Fi?
A: Wi-Fi is a technology used to create wireless networks; its abbreviation comes from “Wireless Fidelity”. Many people refer to Wi-Fi as being “wireless Internet”, because that’s the main use of the Wi-Fi technology.
Often times, people that are using their smartphones in a café are making use of the free Wi-Fi signal provided by the café owners to access the Internet.
Q: How old is Wi-Fi?
A: The technology was invented in the late 90s, even though the first devices that used wireless communication didn’t appear until 2000. Companies used lots of cables to connect their computers in a network back then, so Wi-Fi has made everything simple by helping companies get rid of all their network cables.
Later on, hot-spots appeared in hotels, airports, etc., allowing people to connect to the Internet without having to rely on a wired network.
Q: What can I do to boost the Wi-Fi signal in my home?
A: Begin by moving your router around, until you find a position that provides the best signal. If this solution fails, you can use SMA antennas and RP-SMA cables to bypass the router’s antennas. This method will allow you to experience a significant Wi-Fi signal boost.
Q: What’s with those B, G, N, etc. letters that are sometimes printed on the Wi-Fi devices’ boxes?
A: Technology evolves and Wi-Fi isn’t left behind. Each new standard provides greater speeds, security improvements, greener features, and so on.
If your Wi-Fi devices only support the B and G standards, for example, you are missing out of the faster speeds provided by Wi-Fi N. And faster Wi-Fi network speeds mean faster download speeds, better video streaming, and so on.
Q: Are Wi-Fi networks insecure?
A: Yes, many wireless networks are insecure. Since all your data travels through the air, it can be intercepted and decoded. This is why it’s mandatory to use an encrypted Wi-Fi network.
Q: Is my computer protected from viruses if I make use of an encrypted Wi-Fi network?
A: No, this step will only prevent people from getting access to your data by spying on your wireless network, but doesn’t do anything against the hackers that want to get inside your computer using the Internet. You will also need a good antivirus program and ideally an antispyware program as well, if you want to keep the bad guys at bay.
Q: What is Mobile Wi-Fi?
A: Mobile Wi-Fi is a technology that allows several devices (phones, tablets, laptops, etc.) to share a mobile Internet connection.
In many ways, mobile Wi-Fi is similar with a portable hotspot. If your mobile connection can access the Internet, the connection will then be shared among the connected devices. Internally, Mobile Wi-Fi devices are small modems that also include a 3G SIM. As soon as these modems connect to the mobile phone network, they can start acting like standard Wi-Fi access points.
Global Warming News
The sun has always been a real blessing for life on Earth, and all over the world people try to find ways to use the solar energy in diverse ways that will help us improve our lives.
Back in time people learned to use mirrors and ignite a fire using the rays of the sun. Ancient history tales told us about the creative Archimedes, who used bronze shields to set enemy ships on fire by concentrating the solar energy. Nowadays, after the people have learned to use the water, the wind and coal to make energy, scientists all over the world are still trying to find ways in which they can transform the solar energy into electricity with a much greater efficiency.
A group of scientists from The Department of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials have come up with a brilliant idea that would transform the solar energy into electricity using metals. It is a large research effort that seems to be different from all other similar projects. The scientists have developed devices that can convert the sun energy into electricity by using semiconductors, which are rich in electrons on one side only. The light particles excite the electrons and as a result, these charged particles are created and they can then be captured and used to light up bulbs, for example.
It is not all good news, though. Many nations of the world are worried because of the global warming, and many countries have stated their commitment to fight against global warming, estimated to be about two Celsius degrees higher in comparison to the pre industrial period.
In fact, new studies published by Science Magazine have demonstrated that a raise with only 1.5 degrees of the global temperature has a huge impact on life on our planet. Not only that, but scientists have noticed that in Siberia’s caves, the permafrost begins to melt if the temperature rises with only 1.5 degrees Celsius. If this is really going to happen, experts talk about an impact similar to the release of a 1,000 giga tones bomb.
The permafrost covers about 24 percent of the land surface of the Nordic hemisphere, and if this area begins to melt, the sunlight and the bacteria would have a big impact on the previously frozen plant components. This would mean, in the end, that carbon and methane are released in the air in huge quantities. At this moment there isn’t any viable solution that would allow us to limit the raise in temperature that takes place in the entire world.
The raise in global temperature has been recently linked to the decreased work capacity that people have. In fact, not just the heat affects us, but the high humidity as well. Scientists from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have concluded that due to the climate change, life in different regions on Earth will be completely changed.
The most pessimistic estimations say that around the year 2050, due to the association of high temperatures and high levels of humidity in the air, about 80 percent of the work capacity of people will decrease, especially during the hot summer months, every year. The impact would actually be twice as big as what we are facing today.
When the levels of humidity are high, people can find it very difficult to cool their bodies; perspiration is affected and heat related illnesses will occur. The specialists estimate that over a period of fifty years, if people do not invent new modalities to cool the air and keep the temperature values low, the average Earth temperature would be eleven degrees Fahrenheit higher in comparison with what it was in the preindustrial period.